Abstract
Buoyant plastic in the marine environment is exposed to sunlight, oxidants, and physical stress, which may lead to degradation of the plastic polymer and the release of compounds that are potentially hazardous. We report the development of a laboratory protocol that simulates the exposure of plastic floating in the marine environment to ultraviolet light (UV) and nontarget analysis to identify degradation products of plastic polymers in water. Plastic pellets [polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, and poly(ethylene terephthalate)] suspended in water were exposed to a UV light source for 5 days. Organic chemicals in the water were concentrated by solid phase extraction and then analyzed by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry using a nontarget approach with a C18 LC column coupled to a Q Exactive Orbitrap HF mass spectrometer. We designed a data analysis scheme to identify chemicals that are likely chain scission products from degradation of the plas...
Highlights
Since mass production started in the 1940s, vast amounts of plastics have been produced globally.[1,2] Plastics are very persistent, and it is estimated that 60% of all floating debris in the world’s oceans is plastic.[3−6] Plastic floating on the ocean surface is exposed to sunlight, oxidants, and physical stress.These factors cause weathering of the plastic, which is evident in changes in their brittleness, density, size, and surface charge, and weathering can lead to degradation of the plastic polymers.[7]
We report the development of a laboratory protocol that simulates the exposure of plastic floating in the marine environment to ultraviolet light (UV) and nontarget analysis to identify degradation products of plastic polymers in water
Organic chemicals in the water were concentrated by solid phase extraction and analyzed by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry using a nontarget approach with a C18 LC column coupled to a Q Exactive Orbitrap HF mass spectrometer
Summary
Since mass production started in the 1940s, vast amounts of plastics have been produced globally.[1,2] Plastics are very persistent, and it is estimated that 60% of all floating debris in the world’s oceans is plastic.[3−6] Plastic floating on the ocean surface is exposed to sunlight, oxidants, and physical stress These factors cause weathering of the plastic, which is evident in changes in their brittleness, density, size, and surface charge, and weathering can lead to degradation of the plastic polymers.[7] As plastic is weathered on the ocean surface, additives, residual chemicals from the polymerization process, and free chemicals that are degradation products of the plastic polymer are expected to leach into the surrounding waters. Among polymers with a carbon−carbon backbone, degradation of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) by chain scission is expected to produce olefins, aldehydes, and ketones with a range of molecular weights, while end chain scission is expected to be predominant for polystyrene (PS).[7,8]
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